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Summary List of stories Phase I Day: Honor, Duty, And Family << chapter 18 Chapter 19 of 75 True Sight chapter 20 >> << previous scene Scene 2 of 2 next scene >> Location Participants Time Summary Prologue | Phase I | Phase II | Epilogue 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | 41 | 42 | 43 | 44 | 45 46 | 47 | 48 | 49 | 50 | 51 | 52 | 53 | 54 | 55 | 56 | 57 | 58 | 59 | 60 61 | 62 | 63 | 64 | 65 | 66 | 67 | 68 | 69 | 70 | 71 | 72 | 73 | 74 | 75 Text Scrivener Blooms was quiet: thoughts of their discussion in the morning with Celestia still lingered through his mind, dampening his mood. The day had been a day of questions, discussion, and preparation for the worst... which was why Scrivener was walking next to Shining Armor ahead of a column of soldiers that included Applejack, Twilight Sparkle, and Pinkamena. Overhead, Luna was flying slowly in formation with Rainbow Dash, Scarlet Sage, and several Pegasus soldiers, the dusky light of the setting sun glimmering off their armor making them look like slow moving stars. Scrivener looked up at this as they strode down the dirt road leading into the creaking, whispering Everfree Forest, and then he grimaced a little and glanced awkwardly to the side as he heard Shining Armor ask him something. "Sorry, I was... thinking. What did you say?" "I was just wondering if you were okay. You seem a little out of it, and I'm guessing it wasn't the long walk from Canterlot that did it." Shining Armor replied quietly, looking over him with honest concern, and Scrivener couldn't help but smile: apparently compassion ran deep in Twilight's family. "You sure you'll be okay by yourself?" "The Forest and I have always gotten along pretty well. It's normal pony society that gives me trouble, not the wild lands." Scrivener replied mildly, and Shining Armor gave a small smile before the unicorn looked ahead as the earth pony asked quietly: "What about you? How are you feeling about this?" "Kind of worried." Shining Armor admitted after a moment, shaking his head slowly as they continued down the dirt road, and then he shook his head slowly. "The Princesses informed me of some of the things that we could be facing and... let's just say that if you guys really have fought stuff like that before, you're a lot braver than I ever was." Scrivener smiled at this, looking ahead and saying softly: "Bravery is measured by what we face even when we're scared, Shining Armor. As I've heard it, you've never run away from anything or anyone that threatened who or what you care about. Me, I run away from things all the time. Especially Luna." Shining Armor laughed a bit at this, looking over at him with a smile before he asked finally: "So she really is your wife, huh?" "Yep." Scrivener smiled amusedly back. "I think our relationship may be just a tad different from yours and Cadence's, of course. You two are a nice couple. Maybe even 'normal,' Horses of Heaven forbid. Discombobulation once referred to Luna and me as a 'match made in mad libs.'" "What does that even mean? And who's Discombobulation?" Shining Armor asked, and Scrivener snorted in amusement. "A Draconequus who steals more references than I ever could. And here I was hoping you might have some idea yourself. See, he has a bad habit of talking about things no one understands, mostly because he feeds off confusion, but partly, I think, because he just likes to let his mouth run. Good guy, though. My son really likes him." Scrivener replied, and then he smiled a little at the look on Shining Armor's face. "Yeah, well, you don't even know the punchline to the joke. Believe me, there's weirder than the fact we're friends with a Draconequus." Shining Armor only shook his head, then he glanced up before grimacing and coming to a halt, flicking his horn firmly upwards. There was a snap like a whip and a bright pulse, and the soldiers immediately halted, the Pegasi and Luna winging downwards to look at the Captain of the Guard and he turned around, shouting clearly: "Alright, spread out and search into the forest! We meet back here in an hour, no exceptions! If anyone finds the meteor, send up a signal!" "Yeah, yeah, boring. Dinner break." Pinkamena muttered, even as she stomped fearlessly into the forest, but Scrivener winced as he got the distinct feeling she wasn't going in to look for the meteor. Shining Armor winced a little as well, seeming to pick up on this, but then he shook his head and turned towards the forest himself, giving a last smile to Scrivener before pushing into the underbrush. Other soldiers began to push into the forest as the Pegasi shot overhead to scan the ground, and Scrivener looked up, trading a silent flurry of thoughts with Luna before she winged onwards, flying low over the thick canopy of treetops. Scrivener, meanwhile, felt an odd tingle, and instead of pushing into the forest, he found himself walking calmly onwards down the dirt path, simply letting his mind wander as he made his way quietly onwards. He couldn't describe it: he didn't think even Luna felt this lure, but that could well be because her mind was occupied with her own thoughts, and she was winging eastwards out over the forest. Scrivener looked slowly up as he felt the setting sun on his body like a tangible thing and saw the shadows squirm around him like he was alive, and he closed his eyes as he wondered for a brief moment if the visions were returning. His head swam a little, and he lost track of time as he continued down the road before finding himself meandering down a path carved through the road by some wild animal that likely frequented the area. He followed the natural path calmly onwards, not even realizing the sun had almost set completely as a wave of nausea twisted in his stomach and a strange sensation twisted through his mind... not a lure, not a hook, not even a pull exactly... more like the faintest touch of fingers, like a thin paper sheet brushing against his face... He stepped off the natural path to push into a clearing, looking up... and blinking in surprise as he realized night had fallen completely, and the moon had risen. He frowned a little, reaching up and rubbing slowly at his face, knowing that the hour must already be up... but he felt a strange static, too, making it hard to sense anything, to feel his link with Luna... He grimaced as he strode across the field towards a misshapen boulder, sighing a little as he leaned against it, then grimaced in disgust and drew away when it felt... warm. He looked back at the strange, enormous rock... and then his eyes widened dumbly as he realized he'd found the meteor. Its surface was cracked and marred, the rock brown and ugly, the earth around it humped up and forming a cradle from the long skid it had left behind, the earth pony hurrying to the other side to see the trench it had ripped through the earth, not to mention a multitude of broken trees and chunks of other debris. He stared at this, then turned his eyes toward the wall of the meteor as something caught in his eye, stepping apprehensively towards it as something twinkled... He reached up and pushed nervously against the brittle rock, and it cracked at just his touch, strangely-warm chunks of stone falling away to reveal an inside that was filled with crystals. Crystals of all shape and size, the multicolored stones emitting a hum and exuding a dry heat that made him shiver and feel a strange disgust as he stepped away, muttering: "Incredible... and that... sensation..." He frowned, reaching up and touching his head: closer to the stone, he felt it all the clearer: a feeling he couldn't completely describe and didn't entirely want to, a sensation like something stroking against his mind, a static that riddled his thoughts and made him feel like his brain was covered by a thin curtain, and beneath it, something... something more... Scrivener heard a crunch behind him, feeling a rush of instinct, and he began to spin around... just in time for the blow that would have connected with the back of his head to instead smash into his cheek and knock him backwards against the warm stone of the meteor, cracking apart more of the rocky shell as he snarled and shoved quickly away from it, turning to glare at his attacker as it leapt quickly away, the shape of a Pegasus flitting through the air before it landed on its hooves with a loud clank. The moonlight illuminated it, the Pegasus' head bowed low, its wings spread... and while one was feathered, the other was made of a thin metallic frame beneath thick sheets of what looked like some kind of translucent plastic. Dirty, hay-colored locks spilled around its face, streaked with dried blood, and one ear was almost entirely missing. Scrivener could only stare at it, as it slowly rose its head, breathing hard, teeth long replaced by sharpened, gleaming jaws of metal that were bent and broken here and there... and its eyes covered completely by a dirt-streaked blindfold tied tightly at the side of its features. Its coat was gray, and it was thin, wings trembling as they stood fully out of its frame, its hooves grinding against the ground. Almost half of one foreleg had been replaced by some kind of metal prosthetic, and Scrivener thought with horror that it had a thick vest of some kind literally stitched into its body, as the Pegasus rasped in a harsh voice: "That corruption in your mind is a dead giveaway." "Well it's hard to scrape out. What the hell are you?" Scrivener snarled in return, readying himself... and then he winced when the Pegasus leapt forwards, moving faster than he'd expected, the charcoal stallion barely able to rear back in time to half-catch the winged equine as it swung its hooves down into his shoulders, the two wrestling as he cursed under his breath before he was shoved hard backwards, shocked at the strength of the Pegasus before it leapt backwards. "Valthrudnir called me Visionary... called me a failure and a lot of other things, too. I'll show him what the failure mare can do, though!" Visionary shouted, her voice raw and emotional before she lunged forwards, and Scrivener could only stare before a hoof smashed into his face, knocking him crashing backwards. He cursed under his breath, picking himself hurriedly up, but Visionary was already charging, her mismatched wings spread before she leapt suddenly upwards when Scrivener dropped back in a ready position, and his eyes widened as she caught the air and shot overtop him, kicking her rear legs out as she passed. The stallion barely ducked beneath this before he looked sharply over his shoulder as the Pegasus twisted at the last moment, impacting a tree with all four hooves but running straight up it, ignoring the slender branches she tore through and sent flying in all directions before she spun and launched herself in a spear-like dive towards the earth pony. Scrivener flung himself backwards, crashing down on his back and kicking both rear legs savagely outwards as he tried to process what she had said, but Visionary halted herself in mid-flight, just avoiding the kick before she seized his rear legs in both her front limbs and half-spun with a snarl, yanking the earth pony off the ground and throwing him into the meteor. He bounced painfully into the side of the sickly-warm stone, cracking it inwards as his body half-flipped backwards before he fell heavily on top of the meteor... only for Visionary to rush forwards and try to slam herself down on top of him. Scrivener managed to roll awkwardly out of the way, throwing himself off the boulder and bouncing painfully down to the other side of the field as Visionary yelped and crashed violently down into the interior of the meteor, crystals exploding around her before she roared and leapt upwards, sending out a geyser of diamond dust with the force of her passage. Her eyes locked on Scrivener as the earth pony rolled to his hooves and she shot down in a curving, long arc towards him, shooting in low to the ground before Scrivener leaned forwards with a snarl and intercepted her attack with a hard, straight punch to her face. Her wings twisted almost unnaturally, halting her in midair and flapping hard as her hooves dropped to the ground, landing and stumbling backwards, and Scrivener pressed the advantage, leaping towards her and slamming his hooves back and forth across her features before she threw a hard elbow into the side of his neck when he began to get too close. He was knocked back on his haunches, grabbing automatically at the hurt area before Visionary tackled him and crushed him down into the ground, and Scrivener kicked savagely up into her stomach immediately, but failed to dislodge her as she only twitched before bringing both her hooves up, meaning to crush in his skull with a deathblow. Instead, Scrivener swung his hooves into her upper legs as she began to bring them both down, and there was a loud crack from one as a bone snapped, Visionary crying out in pain and dropping forwards... and as she fell, Scrivener slammed his head upwards, smashing his skull against the end of her muzzle and knocking her staggering backwards before he kicked both rear legs out. His hooves collided with her sewed-on vest, and she was knocked staggering with a grunt before he slammed another kick outwards that struck squarely into her face and sent her flopping onto her back, stunned for a moment as Scrivener breathed hard and scrambled up to his hooves. Visionary rolled to her own in moments as well however, snarling and seeming to simply ignore the fact one of her upper legs was broken, even as it twitched violently and refused to fully support her weight. She dropped herself forwards as her wings spread, and then she lunged towards him in a preternatural burst of speed that shook the air around her with the force of her passage, crashing into him and wrapping her upper limbs around his body in a bear-hug before she kicked off the ground and flapped her wings again to launch herself high into the sky. She corkscrewed violently as she shot into the air, carrying Scrivener with her as he gargled in pain, his ribs creaking from the force of her embrace and eyes bulging as vertigo tore through his senses, and then she snapped her entire body suddenly upwards, flinging Scrivener high into the air as he flailed his limbs helplessly. But only a moment later, Visionary was after him, slamming a shoulder up into his back with enough force to make him howl in pain and fling him in a lazy arc through the sky before she shot beneath him and spun around, slamming both hooves viciously into his face and making his head whiplash as blood burst from his jaws. He flew back in the direction he had been launched from, and Visionary shot forwards again beneath him before she spun around and slammed both rear hooves savagely up into his lower back, knocking him higher upwards with a yell of pain. Scrivener was disoriented, defenseless, almost helpless as he snarled in agony, tears of pain leaking from his eyes before he thought of how Luna was feeling every blow, enduring this battle as well... and the earth pony gritted his teeth before he felt himself beginning to free-fall, forcing his body to cooperate as he looked over his shoulder and saw Visionary waiting for him with her body tensed... At the last possible moment, Scrivener spun around, whipping a hoof across her face in a stunning smack that made her flinch... before his other hoof slammed downwards, crunching solidly into one blindfolded eye with a strange sound like shattering glass. Visionary went rigid for that moment, her back arching before the stallion's heavy body collided with hers and knocked the wind from her wings, and she let out a gasp before Scrivener slammed a hoof across her face and twisted his body hard as he grabbed at her wildly with his other forelimb, clinging to her as they began to spiral wildly downwards through the air. Visionary gave a raw yell, kicking at him, shoving her hooves into him, but unable to do anything as they spun downwards out of control. And only a moment later, they smashed directly into the brittle meteor, crystals erupting with bursts of light and magic and sound around them as agony ripped through Scrivener's body and he was flung through the air by the blast, Visionary hurled towards the other side of the field as the meteor blew apart into shards of crystal and brown, brittle tile and shale. Scrivener's mind went blurry for a few moments, laying weak and prone, breathing hard before he slowly forced himself to sit up despite the agony... and then stared in horror at the sight of Visionary on the other side of the field that was now lit up by glowing, broken chunks of crystal. She was covered in wounds and bruises, her vest torn loose from her stitches and revealing raw, ugly flesh beneath this, and her false wing had been torn from her body, one of the long metal rods of the skeleton spurting a black, oily substance that looked like mechanical blood. She rasped slowly in and out, blood spilling from beneath the blindfold that was steadily being soaked with red before she whispered: "I won't let it... end... here..." Slowly, she dragged herself to her hooves as Scrivener yanked himself to his own... and then Visionary stiffened before lashing her head backwards a moment before a knife shot past her, burying into a tree as Pinkamena snapped: "Goddammit, why the hell do you assholes keep getting all the fun?" The half demon charged across the field from the forest, snarling, before she leapt towards Visionary as she tore her axe off her back and swung it forwards in a beheading rend... only for the Pegasus to slip smoothly backwards, avoiding the attack with ease before seizing the back of the axe and lashing the flat of the massive blade across the half-demon's face, knocking her flat. Visionary spun the weapon easily, gripping it by the handle before raising it high as Scrivener gave a strangled shout... but then the Pegasus slammed it down and struck Pinkamena's skull with the blunt back of the weapon instead of the sharp edge, knocking her in a dazed heap instead of decapitating her. The Pegasus tossed the axe away, slowly staring towards Scrivener as Scrivener stared back, even as others began to arrive: Scarlet Sage, and bruised and battered Luna, who half-fell to the ground, snarling and bleeding as she shouted in a raw voice: "Stay away from my husband, creature!" "Husband..." Visionary seemed to stare towards them... and then, slowly, the Pegasus turned and began to stumble towards Scrivener, even as they heard Shining Armor's voice through the trees, as Rainbow Dash shot down to land beside stunned Pinkamena with a curse and stare in horror at the back of the ripped-apart creature, as others arrived... And yet even Luna could only watch as Visionary half-stumbled and half-dragged herself towards Scrivener Blooms, rasping hard as she stared at him from behind her blindfold with intent that had gone from malicious to questioning before she halted in front of the battered and beaten earth pony. There was no aggression, no violence any longer as they studied each other, and then Visionary whispered: "You're like me. And maybe with the right push..." Slowly, Visionary reached up, pulling off her blindfold, and Scrivener stared in shock: her eyes were lidless, raw sockets, inside which rested black, cracked spheres of glass... one of which had been partly shattered from Scrivener's direct blow to it. Blood and black bile spilled from this socket like tears, as Scrivener found himself staring into the depths of the broken obsidian glass, and at the flares of light that they cradled, the white fires at their very core as Visionary slowly rose a hoof. "You can see." Scrivener frowned at her, and then his eyes widened as those bright flares, those miniature suns in her eyes brightened and something in his mind burst into life, screamed as she had never screamed before. She panted hard, blood and drool dripping from her mouth, hanging weakly by the dragon's hand locked around her throat. The creature called itself Valthrudnir, called itself a Jötnar, and it grinned at her, keeping her pinned easily against the wall as he mocked: "How hideous! Look at this disgusting creature, look at its eyes... they don't even line up properly. Tell me, pathetic little pony... how would you like me to fix that nasty problem for you?" "N-No... there's nothing w-wrong with me... let me go..." the Pegasus rasped, trembling weakly as her wings fluttered behind her, closing her golden, crossed eyes... but Valthrudnir drew her back and slammed her against the window wall again, making her cry out in agony and open her eyes as tears spilled down her cheeks, staring weakly up at him. "Please..." "Nothing wrong with you? Nothing wrong with you!" Valthrudnir threw his head back and laughed, shaking his head slowly before he grinned over his shoulder at the others: others who had given in, others who he had made into monsters. "What a joke! Did you hear this creature? She says there's 'nothing wrong with her,' Worthless little mongrel, why don't you take a look in the mirror?" With that, the Jötnar dragged her backwards, turning her around and slamming her face into the window wall hard enough to crack it, forcing her to stare out into the prison yard beyond filled with terrified ponies fenced in by steel and spikes and lightning... and at herself, at her crossed eyes, at her unflattering features. "You're hideous. You're ugly. You're disgusting. You are a living mistake." "No... I'm... I'm n-not..." she whispered, rasping hard in and out, trembling violently, trying to close her eyes: not to block out the broken reflection of herself, but to take her eyes away from the horrors of the yard beyond, of the broken, beaten, and bloodied ponies all standing and waiting for death... or worse. "Yes you are." Valthrudnir's voice was almost kind, mocking, sincere. "As a matter of fact, you are a superior example... of an inferior being. Tell me, do you want to give birth to worthless children just like you?" "Dinky is beautiful, you... you stay away from her..." the Pegasus whispered before she could stop herself, trembling weakly, and behind her Valthrudnir crowed laughter. "You do have a child? And you dare threaten me? The cross-eyed Pegasus threatens me, how entertaining!" The dragon, the Jötnar, the terrible entity that had done this to their beautiful world, their beautiful Equestria laughed again. "And how pathetic. Very well, let's see just how well your eyes work... tell me what you see when I kill your child." Valthrudnir grinned coldly as he yanked the Pegasus away from the glass and held her up, even as she cried out, even as she shook her head in denial and stared: stared out into the prison yard beyond, and stared at the reflection of the Jötnar, watching as he rose his free hand and snapped his fingers... and outside, the crowd was parted like a wave as some alien force rasped through their ranks, knocking ponies sprawling in all directions. All except for one little unicorn filly, staring up at the glass weakly, at the sight of her mother being held up, tortured, by the unstoppable Jötnar... The Pegasus screamed, shaking her head wildly before she shrieked: "No! Dinky, run away! Forget about Mommy and run, run away!" "Too late." Valthrudnir said almost kindly, and then he simply clenched his hand into a fist as there was a faint pulse of light... and in the yard, the foal staggered backwards as its body glowed for a moment before exploding in a blast of blood and liquified organs that splattered to the ground in a wide circle, ponies yelling in horror and the Pegasus howling in misery as Valthrudnir remarked: "What a big mess such a small child can make. "And, as for you..." Valthrudnir turned, hurling the Pegasus to the ground, and she landed brokenly on the concrete on her stomach, only able to sob, to cry, to tremble as agony raced through her body, her eyes refusing to focus at all, seeing only blurred shapes of hooves through the flow of her tears as the Jötnar instructed calmly: "Cut out her eyes. Then we'll give her the gift of real sight." And the Pegasus felt strong limbs yank her up to her hooves, felt all hope draining from her body as pain tore through his system, as he felt his mind flooded with thoughts, memories, violent imaginings that weren't his own, the earth pony coughing black bile as tears of blood spilled from eyes that stared stupidly across at the Pegasus... And then Visionary smiled weakly at him, even as her breath halted and the flares of light in her glass eyes whiffed out. She stood for a moment longer as her hoof dropped away from his forehead, and then she slowly listed to the side before falling in a broken sprawl as Scrivener staggered backwards, then grabbed at his forehead and dropped his skull to the ground, screaming as he felt the corruption from the Tyrant Wyrm in his mind bubbling viciously, spreading deeper, fusing further into his thoughts as he collapsed forwards in a shivering heap and Luna stared at him with silent horror. Then, a moment later, she was at his side, embracing him tightly, soothing him as Scarlet Sage rushed over, tossing a single scared look at the body as Shining Armor and Twilight Sparkle both staggered into the clearing and looked from broken meteor to broken corpse... to broken earth pony, as Scrivener howled again in torment even as Luna trembled and held him fiercely, holding him tightly around the neck, soothing him as she caught the wisps of alien and monstrous thought and memory twisting into her own mind as she whispered fiercely: "Scrivener, Scrivener, I am here, calm down now, calm down... I am here, beloved, I am here, I have thee now and everything, everything is alright..." But even as she spoke the words, she was terrified they weren't true, terrified of what this meant, of what the vision she had only caught glimpses of through their linked soul could mean for them as Scrivener broke down into sobs and held tightly onto his skull as black, bloody tears spilled from his eyes, barely able to comprehend the world around him as the corruption surged and roared and kissed through his damaged mind. Category:Transcript Category:Story